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A summer program where children received free lunches at a local school worked out well and probably will be offered again next year, said a Wilmington City Schools official.

A total of 3,783 meals were served in what’s called the Seamless Summer Option through the National School Lunch Program, said Curt Bone, WCS director of business operations.

“The kids throughout the program were very well-behaved and always polite and thankful for the meal,” Bone said. “It ended up being a great program and, as a district, we look forward to serving the community in the same capacity next summer.”

This past summer was the first time WCS offered the federal program, which Bone said is basically funded through reimbursements.

“We were at the break-even point. We stayed steady [in guests] throughout the summer. Hopefully we can get more people aware next time. We would have people say they didn’t know about it, and we hope with greater outreach to meet more kids needs in the summer,” said Bone.

Also, he thinks some people thought the program, which was available weekdays in the middle school cafeteria, was solely for the less fortunate, but that isn’t so.

All children 18 and younger, whether or not they’re enrolled in Wilmington schools and whatever their family’s income, are eligible for the lunch free of charge. The meal must meet the same nutritional requirements as a school-year lunch, according to Bone.

“The more kids we serve, the better,” he said.

Gary Huffenberger can be reached at 937-382-2574, ext. 2512 or on Twitter @GHuffenberger.

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